Sand Castles

The ocean practically called his name as he wobbled his way through the sand to the shoreline in that early morning sunlight. He squinted and giggled all the while, jumping excitedly holding tight to his mamas hand. His little legs swishing back and forth, as he marveled at the sun dancing on the surface of the water before him.

The little red crab on his swim trunks matched the sunglasses the shark on his floaties wore. So inflated they made his chubby arms squeak under the sweaty plastic, creating the sweetest of sounds. Mama tilted his hat and caked just the right amount of sunscreen under his unbelievably bright blue eyes, gently placing a kiss on his gritty forehead.

Smelling like coconut and bananas, he happily dug holes in the sand with the yellow shovel his papa had given him for this trip, last christmas. He waited patiently for his mama to place their towels out under the flamingo shaped umbrella, knowing his favorite juice would soon be brimming in his ship shaped sippy cup. As he took his first sip, he pointed excitedly at the water, his straw still cupped in between his lips. Mumbling with a smile that enveloped his entire face, "wawa, please, mama."

She led him to the water and watched as his expression change from apprehensive fear to overwhelming delight, and at that moment, everything in the world was right.

As the morning moved along, the beach began to fill up with weekend visitors, and before noon it was so full they could barely see the water through all of the umbrellas.

It was no surprise to mama to see him making friends, from the seagulls and random dogs, to other children there enjoying the long awaited summer weather.

She watched happily as he carried his shovel, like a bulldozer for hire. Making room for coolers and water toys, to creating a cool spot for Franny, the dog to shade herself in. He didn't know a stranger, he never did, he was a human magnet, drawing smiles and conversation with anyone who looked his way.

He was thrilled when the kids next to them unpacked their shovels and invited him to come over to help them build their sand castle. He grinned at mama as he pulled the label out of his swimsuit to provide the red flag to fly from the top of their creation. When the other kids made their way to the water's edge for some relief, he decided to stay back, wanting to build a moat to protect the princess.

Mama called him over and quickly reapplied his lotion, but he was off and back to digging before she could get it all rubbed in. She shook her head playfully, as she turned to place the tube back into the beach bag.

Mama happily shared the snacks from their bag, popsicles, soda and his favorite chips. With sticky fingers they hurried down to the waters edge, everyone laughing and splashing the cold water at one another, sending the kids running back to the safety of their warm towels.

Suddenly, the laughter turned to screaming as the sand that surrounded their castle began to fold inside itself. Mama looked around, searching frantically to find her boy, with no success.

Before she knew it, her world had been swallowed up. The crowds alerted the lifeguard who called the police, who phoned for rescue, who tirelessly searched for the boy, but he was never found.

Mama was taken away by the rescue team, all the while, calling his name.

“Barrett”

The shovel was left standing, half buried in the sand. A silent reminder of what had been lost that day, along with a mound of damp sand, remnants of the sandcastle that would never be.